Magnetic gradiometer



Dec- 22, 1953 w. E. wlcKl-:RHAM Erm. 2,663,843

MAGNETIC GRADIOMETER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 5. 1950 MAGNETIC GRADI OMETER 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 5, 1950 ATTORNEY DCC- 22, 1953 w. E. WICKERHAM ET AL 2,563,843

MAGNETIC GRADIOMETER 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Aug. 3, 1950 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 22, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MAGNETIC GRADIOMETER Delaware Application August 3, 1950, Serial N o. 177,424

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a magnetic space gradiometer and in particular concerns a magnetic gradiometer which is advantageously used in conjunction with an airborne magnetometer such as is employed in magnetic-prospecting operations.

In prospecting for minerals, petroleum and the like, it has long been customary to measure various parameters of the earths magnetic iield over the area being investigated. From these measurements geophysicists have been able to infer the nature of the underlying rock formation or deposits with the ultimate aim of locating valuable minerals or possible petroleumbearing rock formations. Of the various types of magnetic measurements heretofore made, the most extensively employed has been the vertical magnetic component measured with the so-called Schmidt-type vertical balance. This device necessitates the use of a fixed support for taking a measurement. More recently, various types of airborne magnetometers have been developed to a high degree of perfection and it has been pcssible to magnetically map large areas which were previously inaccessible and such airborne magnetic surveying may be done with great rapidity. Other types or" magnetic 'measurements have been proposed and made for prospecting purposes, one of these being the space gradient of the magnetic iield or some component thereof. In certain types oi geological areas such magnetic-gradient maps yield particularly useful results in that the maps show indications of mineral deposits, which indications may be obscure on other types ci maps. useful for iinding magnetic-anomalies of relatively small dimension and these often may contain magnetic minerals of substantial commercial value.

I-Ieretoiore measurement of the magnetic gradient has required the use of a two-element gradiometer, the elements of which have a spacial separation and are connected electrically in opposition in an appropriate manner so that the combined output is a difference signal. Two important diiculties arise when such a twoelement gradicmeter is used in an airplane. If the eieinents are located close together, the magnetic diierence between their two locations very small, and it becomes impossible to attain f Ii/Iagnetic-gradient maps are particularly f It is an object of this invention to provide a magnetic space gradiometer which is particularly useful in airborne magnetic prospecting.

It is another object of this invention to provide a magnetic space gradiometer which may be conveniently used in conjunction with an airborne magnetometer for rapidly prospecting an area.

It is a further object of this invention to provide auxiliary means for use in connection with a total-held type of airborne magnetometer, which means records the time derivative or timerate-of-change of magnetic intensity Wherefrom the space gradient of magnetic intensity may readily be computed.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a simple means for use in conjunction With an airborne magnetometer whereby any desired time derivative of the magnetic intensity may be measured Whereirom the desired order of space gradient may readily be computed.

These and other useful objects of our invention are attained in the manner disclosed in the following Specification of which the drawings form a part, and in which:

Figure 1 is a block diagram of one form of the invention when used in conjunction with a totalfleld magnetometer;

Figure 2 is a block diagram oi another embodiment of the invention;

Figure 3 is a wiring diagram of one form of a phase-sensitive rectifier which may be employed in connection with Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a block diagram of an embodiment oi the invention whereby higher order of derivatives may be obtained.

In most airborne-magnetometer surveys, it is usual to stabilize the magnetometer element in such a way that it measures the total terrestrial magnetic-eld vector. The output of the magnetometer is recorded as it is flown over the area along substantially regularly-spaced flight lines. The pattern of the flight lines may be rectangular or circular or hyperbolic, depending on the type of position control which is being employed by the flight navigator. In all cases the position of the plane is accurately correlated with the magnetic record. From these data it is therefore possible to obtain the location over the ground and also the ground speed of the airplane at all times during the survey.

For recording the magnetic intensity observed along the ight line, an apparatus is provided on the airplane which will respond rapidly so that the recorder will accurately give a "'ue picture of the magnetometer output signal as the latter traverses the area. Such a rap 'f response is particuiarly necessary in areas where the observed magnetic intensity changes rapidly from place to place, as is the case in geological areas likely to contain iron ores or other highly magnetic rocks,

designated oy the block it and .electrically connected thereto. may be employed in some magnetoineters, each 2 It is also in such areas that the magnetic gradient method is inost useful.

The precision required in magnetic prospect-v ing necessitates that the recording scale be greatly expanded for recording the magnetic intensity. Experience in areas containing highly magnetic rocks has shown that large intensity variations may occur which cause the recor ing mechanism to rapidly traverse its scale, whereupon an automatic mechanism is provided to cause the recorder to continue record after stepping to the other side of the scale. Such unavoidable discontinuities tend to confuse the interpretation of the records. These discontinuities are eliminates from the magnetic gradient record when made by our invention, thus greatly sii `ifying the interpretation or" the magnetic data. Qur invention provides a simple manner or" obtaining a continuous magnetic gradient recort. conjunc tion with the operation of a recording magetometer even though the latter gives a discontinuous record because or" frequent recorder steps. ln referring to Figure i there shown a sin.- plied bloei; diagram of the various component parts of a magnetoineter, such as is customarily used in making airborne magnetic ments. The niagnetorneter instrument itself is `may comprise one or more nur; valves (not shown) such as are cus tomarily used in airborne magnetometers. The uX valves may he en ited ley of erlciter i i Several exciters exciter being connected respectively to one of the nur valves in the niagnetoineter unit if). The output signal from the inagnetonieter reprei senting the desired magnetic inte.` sity nieasur^- ment is fed into an amplifier i2 whose output is detected in sensing device 3. The sensing device S serves to detect changes of signal either side of a predetermined operating level, and its output may he biased in linoivn manner so to give discrimination between increasing and decreasing signals. The output of amplier l2 is delivered to a compensator drive unit i3 which comprises a ineans lor converting the output of amplifier l2 into mechanical movement conveniently he a reversible electric inotor other form of electromechanical transducer, In order to operate the inagnetometer at maximum sensitivity, almost all of the ambient to which the magnetorter itl is subjected is nuiliiied by current in a nulling coil ill. This coil conveniently oe located on the measuring flux valve of magnetometer iti lout for simplicity is shown in Figure l as a separate coil irl. The milling current in coil ifi is supplied from comm pensator battery l5 and is maintained under the .control of the compensator drive i3. The coni pensator drive motor i3 may drive the shaft of a potentiometer it through mechanical drive l Accordingly, the nulling current is supplied from compensator battery i5 through the adjustable potentiometer iii. Potentiometer le may core prise a long slideovire resistor or other forni of current-regulating mechanism for regulating the current supplied to the nulling coil ifi. The current which is supplied to nulling coil it may he recorded by a recorder il which may be a recording arnrneter. Alternatively, the current may loe fed through a precision resistor S and the resulting voltage drop across the resistor may be recorded by a recorder il of the potentionietric type.

Thus, the magnetometer Iii operates substantially continually in zero eld, or at sonic fixed small bias nelrl as is -well known in the art, and

'Whenever the output oi amplifier l2 falls above or 'oelovv this xed value the compensator drive rotates clockwise or counterclockwise so as to control the setting of potentiometer it to maintain proper nulling current, this nulling current being recorded on recorder il to afford a perinanent and continuous record of the magnetic field experienced icy inagnetoineter iii.

Mechanically coupler. to the compensator motor i3, either directly or through the gearing l, is an electromagnetic generator having output leads 2 l it is apparent that the voltage Yacross leads 2i is proportional to the Velocity of the campenv eater-drive motor and since the motor is men ohanically coupled to the potentiometer this velocity signal in leads 2i is directly proportional to the time rate at which the potentiometer it adjusts the nailing current. The store, the potential across leads 25 is proportional to t.e time-rate-of-change o nul ng current, i. it is proportional to the tinie-rateo-change or" inagnetic intensity.

Generator Eil may he either Dfi). or A.C. l1 oi the D.C. type, the sense of the rate-oi-change is determined by the polarity oi the voltage on leads 2l. lf of the A.C. type, the sense of the rate-oi-change is determined by the phase, which may loe detected by means oi a phase-sensitive rectifier As in Figure l, a potentiometric recorder 23 loe connected to the out-K put ci the phase-sensitive rectifier 2d and such a rec rder will produce a record or the timerateoi-change of nulling current, i. e., the timerate-of-change of magnetic intensity to which the magnetoineter it is subjected. li generator 2o is of the D.C. type, the unit 2 lee dispensed with and the recorder 23 may be connested directly to the leads i. -l e recorder 23 may conveniently he a zero-center recorder so that both increase and decrease of magnetic intensity may be recorded.

When the apparatus of ligure l is mounted in an airplane and iiown over a regular iiight pattern, the airplane speed is usually mainq tained at a fixed known value. inasmuch as the position of the airplane inust be accurately determined at frequent intervals in orner to correlate the record or" magnetorneter ecorder i l with ground position, the ground speed of the airplane will also at all time be accurately known. In any event, the airplane ground speed may he easily determined from the various factors aiecting ilight, e. g., air speed, Wind, e c. The record of timeuate-oi-lchange recorder 23 may therefore be readily converted into space gradient of magnetic intensity along the ilight line by simply dividing the recorded trne-rate-oin change by the ground speed. Thus the space gradient in gamma per mile is the time-rate-ofchange in gamma per minute divided by the ground speed in miles per minute. In flying a total-field niagnetometer along a rectangular grid the recorded space gradient will be the derivative o total magnetic intensity, said derivative being taken along the direction of the ight line.

Recorder 23 thus produces a record of magnetic gradient directly from the observed rnagnetometer operations Without the necessity of making further computations on the total-field record. The record is identical to that which would be obtained from a two-element gradiometer of extreme and heretofore unattainable sensitivity. The records of recorder l1 and 23 taken together represent the magnetic intensity and the space gradient of magnetic intensity along the night line. By properly choosing the direction of flight lines with respect to the general geological strike of the area, the gradient record from recorder 23 will very markedly show the location of magnetic anomalies, and taken together with the magnetic intensity record from recorder l1 will afford a powerful tool for the determination of depth and size of rock strucn tures which produce the observed anomalies.

ligure 2 shows a more detailed block diagram of a preferred form of our invention. |I'he magnetorneter 3u may be excited from exciter 3l which may conveniently be an inverter comprising a lilo-cycle generator driven from D.C. power available on the airplane. The magnetometer 3i! may contain one or more ilux valves of known type which are excited by one or more separate generators in the unit 3|. The output signal of magnetometer may in one form consist of a series of sharp Voltage pulses or spikes pictured at 32 (Figure 2) as fully described in Vacquier U. S. Patent No. 2,406,870. These are fed into detector unit 33 which is sensitive to the amplitudes of the pulses and which produces a iluctuating D.C. output (pictured at 29) in response thereto. Filter te smooths this out to a steady D.C. signal. This D.C. is converted to square waves (pictured at 28) of E30-cycle A.C. of predetermined phase by means of a (iO-cycle chopper 35. Chopper 35 may conveniently be a vibrator which is driven by and in synchronism with the inverter 4l. Since inverter 47 also feeds other parts of the apparatus, there is a definite phase relationship between the output signal 28 from chopper 35 and the voltages in other parts of the apparatus.

Detector circuit 33 may be of any type which will give either plus or minus output upon deviation, in one direction or the other, of the eld at element 36# from some predetermined value which is preferably'zero eld. Thus, the output oi chopper 35 will become zero and reverse polarity as the field passes through this zero value. To maintain the eld at or very near zero at the magnetometer element 33 when the element is placed in the earths eld, it is necessary to buck out or compensate the earths eld by means of a 'i1-C. current fed into a compensating coil (not shown in Figure 2) wound around the measuring flux-valve element. This current is automatically and continuously adjusted to match the earths 'lield by means of elements numbered 3G, 3l, 39, 4t, 4|, and 42. The coinpensating current is D.-C. supplied from battery d2 metered out to the desired value by means of a long-range potentiometer 4i. This potentiometer may conveniently be a multi-turn type of potentiometer, for example, one having a'range of 40 turns between maximum and minimum current, and may be driven by motor 3l through friction drive wheels 39 and 40. Motor 3l is a two-phase motor, one phase of which is always excited from inverter 4l. Its other phase is excited only as required bythe output of chopper 35, after amplication and conversion in unit 35 to sinusoidal wave form as pictured at 2l (Figure 2). Since the direction of rotation of a Z-phase motor depends on the phase sequence of the two windings, reversal of the chopper output phase will reverse the motor rotation.

The above-described system operates so that 54 from departure of the magnetic eld at element 35i in either sense from the desired value will start the motor 37 rotating in the direction necessary to readjust the compensating current and bring the magnetic iield at element 3Q baci; to the desired value of zero. Thus, the ma reto-meter acts as a null device, and the compensating current can be used as a measure of the magnetic eld at the magnetometer 3d. Recorder Ml is used to measure the oornpensatin.fr current and can be calibrated in magnetic intensity units by choosing a resistor 43 which will produce the correct potential dinerence to deflect the recorder a desired distance for a certain value of magnetic field and compensating current. The recorder (it is conveniently of the potentiometer type.

A two-phase induction generator i t is 1nechanically coupled to motor 3l as for example by coupling 26, and delivers its output to leads 5i One winding of the generator 3S is ied through leads 52 with the supply voltage of iverter oi rlxed phase. Therefore, the other winding of the generator 38 produces an output sig al which reverses phase whenever the direction or" rotation of the generator 33, i. e., motor 3l, is reversed. Furthermore, the output of the induction generator 38 has its phase and ampli" de determined by its direction of rotation and angular velocity. As a consequence, the output of this generator contains information direc ly related to the magnitude and sign of the tir erate-ct change of the magnetic field. rl'his information is reduced to usable forni by feeding the generator output into a phase-sensitive rectifier e3 to be more fully described later. Thus, the in- 1formation appears in lead 53 as B.-C. whose polarity and magnitude depend on the direction and angular velocity of the generators roti..- tion. This voltage is suitable to be fed inte a zero-center potentioinetric recorder The generator output at leads 5l, proportional to its speed of rotation, may be used to indicate the time-rate-of-change of the signal output amplier 3B. In order to indicate whether this tiine-rateofchange is positive or negative, a phase-sensitive rectifier circuit mayv be used. One type of such a phaseweneitive reetier circuit is shown in detail in r'igure 3, which corresponds to unit 48 of Figure 2 or unit 0; Figure l. In the circuit o1 Figure two diodes El and 62 convert the (iO-cycle 5l (Figure 2) into DAJ. which can be gradient recorder 48 (Figure 2). Diodes El and 62 may be of type 1-N-34 crystal rectiers or or type B-H-d vacuum tube rectiers or other equivalent types. Two components of r1.4?. are ied to the rectiiiers. The generator' output component from leads 5| (Figures 2 and 3) which is to ee indicated, is fed through transformer (Fgure 3). The reference voltage from the 60-cyele inverter 4'! is fed through leads (Figures 2 and 3) to transformer 64. Condenser is inserted in leads 56 (Figure 3) in order to pr ly phase the reference voltage supplied to traM uriner It may be seen from Figure 3 that either of the voltages from 5i or 5G alone is fed equally to the two rectiers iii and 52, and that the rectifier outputs are in opposition. Hence, neither of the A..C. inputs 5l or 5S alone can produce 53,-0. output. However, if both leu-C. inputs are applied simultaneously, the A..C. peak values will combine additively at one rectifier and combine subtractively at the other recticr, so that a net E? r D.C. value appears across the terminals 65 and EQ. lf the input si, delivered from generator 35, (Figure 2) reverses in phase, addition will occur on the opposite rectiiier and the D.C. output polarity of terminals tri and @t will reverse.

While Figure 3 shows an electronic type of phase-sensitive rectifier, the same result may he accomplished by the use of a mechanical synchronous rectier which is driven synchronously7 With the A.C. from inverter il of Figure 2. Phase-sensitive rectification may then ce ohtained since one phase of generator 38 is excited from (synchronously) inverter ll as previously mentioned.

A zero-center recorder (Figure 2) is preerred because plus and minus values are to he recorded. iotenticrneter tl (Figure 3) may he adjusted to compensate for slight differences leetv/een rectiiers El and E2 cr to compensate for any differential drift between them. Condenser GS removes the A.C. ri le from the D.C. output of the rectiers. .-.ne voltage delivered hetween terminals ii and Se may be voltage-divided as by resistors te and "it to suit a sensitive potentioinetric recorder it oi Well-known type. Leads 53 (Figures 2 3) are accordingly con nested to such a potentiometric recorder le (Figure 2).

The output of this instrument is sufciently linear to allow quantitative calibration in gamma per minute, which in turn may be reduce-:l to gamma per mile or other unit ci distance the manner previously explained.

Figure i shows a block diagram a forni o" our invention hy means of which h rivatives of the magnetic tensity rectly measured. Apparatus ',or ,c nng directly such higher order derivatives of the inagnetonieter record has heretofore not 'seen availacle. Figure e is similar in respects o Figure 2 those units hearing similar reference numerals perform similar functions in Figures 2 and e. in Figure e the output of generator may he fed into a phasesensitive rectifier and recorder if desired to obtai the first ti e derivative as in Figure 2, "out order to octain a second order derivative, the output of generator 3S- (Eigure 4.) is fed into an amplifier whose output may drive a motor By coupling the motor 5S to a second generator E@ which is in all respects similar to te a signal output is ob tained on lear e@ which related to the motion of motor 58 in exactly the way that the output of generator is related to the motion of motor El, namely, tine derivative. Generator fill may have one phase excited from inverter il? as in generator Thus the D.-C. outpu.J signal i2 delivered oy the phaeesensitive rectifier 'il is representative of the second time derivative or the magnetic intensity recorded by recorder This second derivative may 'ce recorded on recorder i3.

inasmuch as recorder gives the second time derivative, it is necessary `to divide th recorded numerical value by the ground speed s glared in order to obtain the second space derivative of the magnetic intensity.

lt is apparent that the apparatus of Figure i may be further expanded to obtain higher order derivatives if such are desired. These deriva tives are thus recorded directly Without the necessity of making any diierential computation from the recorded data. The higher order de rivatives may he recorded either with or without recording the lower derivatives.

The records of recorder 23 oi Figure l, of Figure 2, and 'i3 of Figure 4 may respectively he synchronized with the records of recorder il or" Figure 1, ell of Figure 2 and of Figure 4l in conventional manner by operating the respective tape drives by means of synchronous motors, clocks or other well-known devices. Alternatively, ducial marks may simultaneously o placed on the corresponding records in order that corresponding points may he located on the total intensity and gradient records. These or other auxiliary ducial marks may also be used to indicate on the records the position of the airplane over the survey area, such ducal marks being simultaneously impressed on the strip map or other csition-determining record in well-known manner.

What ive claim as our invention Apparatus for measurng the change of magnetic inten ty coi ing sensitive to inten" magnetic neld, electromechanical transducin means electrically connected to the or detecting "ieans, means for compensati major portion of said pensa-ting means being controllo 'a tremechan transducer, an enerator .echanically coupled to said means electrically connected. s ge erator in icating the electr ical output t' 2. Apparatus for measuring the tiineiatc-oichange or" magnetic intensity ng detectH ing means sensitive to an intensity value of a magnetic field, electrical transducing means conv nected to the output of said detecting for transforming the output thereof inte alterhating-current signal Whose phase x 'o tuile are indicative of the output of said oetec alternating-current two-phase motor having one phase connected to said electrical transducer and the other phase connected to a synchronous alternating-current supply of ired for compensating substantially all or i' e nog netic rield at said detecting means, comn pensating means being controlled by said motor, an alternating-current two-phase induction genn erator mechanically coupled to said motor and having one phase excited hy said current supply of fixed phase, phasasensA rectier means electrically connected to the out put of said generator, means connecting d phase-sensitive rectifier means to alterna ing-current supply of fixed and means electrically connected to said phase-sensitive reeM tier indicating the electrical output thereof.

change of magnetic intensity compri ing means sensitive to an intensity value of o. magnetic iield, electromechanical transducing means electrically connected to the output et detecting means, means for ccrcpensating pr portional part of said magnetic field, said ccinpensating means being controlled said elec tromechanical transducer, electrletic generator mechanically coupled to sai-i1. t ansducer, and means electrically connected to s generator indicating the electrical outpuJ WARREN E. lCERH-nn. ORVLLE T. DOOLEN.

References Sited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,408,870 Vacquier Sept. 3, i945 

